Kerry is in big trouble. As far as I know, the only things remotely scandalous about him are his wife telling someone to shove it and the made up story about his treachery in Vietnam. Oh,and he cussed his guards. Regardless, they’re relatively minor things.

However, there is a Bush scandal, real or (usually) imaginary, every couple of weeks: His evil ties to big oil, the Plame non-scandal, the lack of vast quantities of WMDs in Iraq, Abu Grahib, he was selected not elected, everything in F911, etc. Yet the polls are always close.

What does this say? I’m not sure. It could mean the people don’t trust the sources of these supposed scandals. It could mean that people just really like Bush. Or it could mean that people really just don’t like Kerry.

Below, I ask:

And why does News 2 spell Elizabethton phonetically?

A reader in the news biz sent me an email stating:

On your site you ask: “And why does News 2 spell Elizabethton phonetically?”

I have a simple answer. The story came from the Associated Press Broadcast Wire. That feed is intended for TV and radio stations, but not Web sites. Unfortunately, TV stations like WKRN and WATE subscribe to that one.

WATE does not publish wire stories without editing out pronouncers and making sure they conform to a style that’s appropriate for a Web site. It appears that WKRN does not, or perhaps the pronouncer in that story just slipped through the process.

So, there you have it.

Blake has the details of some silliness:

An emergency management agency director’s attempt to stage a realistic drill shocked people attending a Carter County Commission meeting.

Commissioners had just convened last night in Elizabethton (ee-LIHZ’-uh-BETH’-t’n) when a man and a woman rushed in carrying guns, held a weapon to the head of county finance director Jason Cody and said there would be no new taxes.

One of the people acting as a hostage-taker fired a blank.

The shaken finance director said later he didn’t know what was happening. The county sheriff wasn’t clued in either and city police responded when someone called 9-1-1.

Good thing your friendly neighborhood SayUncle wasn’t at the meeting or, well you know. On second thought, maybe not. That no new taxes thing and all.

All kidding aside, they seriously didn’t tell the police about it. Sounds like a good way to get shot.

Update: And why does News 2 spell Elizabethton phonetically?

In an update to the post about the WATE’s local news catching lawful commerce on tape, I sent an email to the news contact and, what I assumed was the email address for Tim Miller, that said:

Your report on the gun show loophole is disingenuous. There is the right of citizens to engage in lawful commerce. There has never been a federal law written to restrict the private sale of firearms. Additionally, such a law would be unenforceable. By “unlicensed dealer”, you are referring to those citizens who legally sell their own property. By referring to it as a “loophole,” you imply that there is a deliberate effort to skirt the law.

Additionally, the Bureau of Justice Statistics concluded that:

“Less than 1% of “crime guns” were obtained at gun shows.”

And

“Only 0.7% of convicts bought their firearms at gun shows. 39.2% obtained them from illegal street dealers.”

The ATF often fails to investigate illegal purchases. According to the Associated Press, over 7,000 people who should have been barred from buying guns obtained them (i.e., were not stopped by the background check process you hold so dear) through dealers. Additionally, out of 122,000 purchases that were denied due to background checks, only 154 were charged (source)

For some sensationalistic reporting, you may want to attempt to purchase one off the street. However, such an attempt would be dangerous and I don’t recommend it.

I also posted it at WATE’s message board.

Update: I received the following email from Tim Miller at WATE:

Aaron,

I found out the word loophole, although not used in our on-air version of the piece, was included when the script was posted on the website. I have since talked to Angie to get it removed.

Tim

I don’t know who Aaron is but cool. You will notice that the word loophole doesn’t appear in the story now. Having said that, I watched the video they have there. This prompted another email to Mr. Miller:

Thanks. I just watched the video segment.

In it, you also stated that the Columbine killers got their guns from a gun show. This is true on the surface. However, what you may not know is that Manes and Anderson (who bought the guns for the killers) were lawful purchasers and would have passed a background check if performed. She made an illegal straw purchase on behalf of the killers. Additionally, the 18 year old killer could legally purchase his own rifle (since he was an adult). A background check would in no way have stopped Columbine.

I’ll post this at the forum too.

This is funny:

A BIG thank-you to all the readers who called and e-mailed to point out a mistake we made on Saturday, when we identified the man sitting with Lily Tartikoff at Mr. Chow in Los Angeles as Brandon Tartikoff, her late husband. The brilliant NBC programmer died of cancer in 1997. We regret the error.

Source: Terror attack to be in early September:

More financial institutions than previously disclosed may be at risk of attack, and an al-Qaida operative has told British intelligence that the group’s target date is early September, intelligence sources said yesterday.

The operative, described as “credible” by British intelligence, told his debriefers that the attack would take place “60 days before the presidential election” on Nov. 2, according to a former senior National Security Council official. On Sept. 2 President George W. Bush is expected to address the Republican National Convention at Madison Square Garden.

Counterterrorism officials are analyzing data from a computer seized in Pakistan last month to see if financial institutions in addition to the five disclosed Sunday are at risk of attack, U.S. officials said yesterday.

The former senior National Security Council official said he was told by British intelligence that they are interrogating an al-Qaida operative who confirmed that financial institutions are being targeted and that an attack was planned for September.

And a U.S. official familiar with the ongoing analysis of the computer said, “There are references to other things [buildings]” in the al-Qaida computer’s data, including a picture of the Bank of America building in San Francisco. “There is mention of other places.”

The laptop computer was seized on July 25 following the arrest after a 12-hour gun battle of Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani, who is wanted for his alleged role in the 1998 bombing of two U.S. embassies in Africa.

I guess they mean it this time.

Rob from Peter to give to Paul. The Post Standard reports:

Destiny needs the development agency to use its eminent domain powers to take away some of the lease rights held by Carousel Center’s department stores.

The leases held by J.C. Penney, Kaufmann’s and Lord & Taylor give them virtual veto power over any mall expansion. The retailers have expressed concern that their prominent positions in Carousel Center will be diminished if the mall is expanded.

Destiny is a retailer that is expanding a mall with the city of Syracuse.

Via Bubba, we learn that the reports that led to terror alert is three years old, according to some say officials. A little bit late there, fellas.

Don’t get me wrong, I think it is a good idea to be alert but given the timing, it’s a bit questionable. However, the fact the information isn’t new doesn’t mean that there is no threat.

Update: To make XRLQ happy, Tom Ridge says surveillance done by terrorists occurred as recently as January. That makes it new info in my book.

Ray Edwards has an idea for a reality show that doesn’t suck. American Pundit. I like it.

First, let me just say that I feel safer when Congress is not in session. That out of the way, it seems that Kerry urged Bush to call Congress back into session. Screw that, I don’t care if they ever go back to work again. When they’re in session, everyone of us should be nervous. As an aside, them being in session increases the odds that the Assault Weapons Ban gets up for a vote.

The ironic part is that Kerry, who doesn’t show up to vote all that much, is calling for it. I’m certain that if such a call was made that Kerry would stop campaigning and get right to work?

I have added a new category for Eminent Domain, another pet issue of mine. The reason is to track potential abuses like this one:

Winona will pursue eminent domain to take over the Key Real Estate property because the owners want “considerably more” money than the city has offered, the city attorney says. City Attorney Richard Blahnik defined eminent domain as “the taking of private property for a public purpose by a government (entity).”

If you want the property, tender an offer. The market sets the price not a government agency. More:

In this case, the city is widening Pelzer to four lanes, as well as building a bridge over the railroad tracks.

Parts of U.S. Highway 14, on which Key Real Estate sits, are included in the project.

Blahnik says the assessed value of the property, 415 Ronald Ave., is $437,000.

The city has offered the appraised value of $630,000, he said. The current owners paid $595,000 to buy the property in August 2003.

On the plus side, this is not a case of a government taking the property only to sell it cheap to a private entity that wants to develop it. Given what I know of appraisals (they are typically low), it seems to me that a decent counter offer could solve the problem, after all legal fees will run in the tens of thousands.

Local TV station WATE hysterically writes about the supposed gun show loophole:

The Brady law, passed in 1993, requires licensed gun dealers to conduct a background check on every buyer. However, a loophole in the law allows people who aren’t licensed gun dealers to skip background checks on buyers.

That means you can make a purchase person to person in Tennessee without a background check.

Remember, these unlicensed dealers are you and me. People who wish to engage in lawful commerce with one another. A private sale between individuals. More:

To find out how easy it is to buy a gun without a background check, the 6 News crew went to the Mike Holloway Gun Show in Chilhowee Park. The crew’s hidden camera showed it didn’t take long to make a purchase.

Tim Miller approached some men on their way into the gun show, asking, “You guys selling? I’m looking for a handgun. You guys selling any handguns at all today?” They had several guns to offer.

One man said, “I got one for $240, two clips.” But after Miller told them, “I don’t have that much with me today” they also brought out a Smith and Wesson revolver for $225.

The hidden camera recorded the men looking to see if any signs prohibited gun purchases outside the show. But there weren’t any. “Let me see here, can I give you $220? Is that cool? Okay,” Miller asked. “Just go ahead and stick that in your pocket. And it’s yours,” the seller said.

While all licensed gun sellers, including those inside the gun show, are required to do background checks, the men outside weren’t doing anything illegal since it was a person to person sale. It’s also not illegal to sell guns outside of a gun show.

I hate to break it to you but you don’t have to go outside the show. That purchase could have occurred in the show or at your home. It has never been illegal for private citizens to sell guns to other private citizens.

The Second Amendment Foundation has invited Kerry to attend National High Power Rifle championships so that he can see that semi-automatic rifles have a legitimate sporting purpose. It won’t happen, of course, but I’d like to see either of the candidates attend.

10 – Kuciniching
9 – She was for it but now she’s against it
8 – Do some stem cell research
7 – Convening the delegate
6 – Having it in our power . . .
5 – Ohhhh! bama
4 – Releasing the balloons
3 – Run it up the flagpole and see if Kerry salutes it
2 – No one reported for duty
1 – Help is not on the way

Yeah, it’s worth what you paid for it.

From The Guardian. Long story short: because it’s boring and stupid.

Let the flames begin!

From The Hill. The first thing I noticed was a picture, with a caption that says “Sen. John Kerry’s campaign is running television commercials showing him hunting.” The picture, however, shows John Kerry at a shooting range. Ok, no big deal, but it just makes me roll my eyes.

The title of the article is “Guns split the Kerry campaign,” and it discusses how the Kerry campaign hasn’t really addressed the issue of gun control. He doesn’t mention it in his speeches, and it’s not in the “issues” section of his website. He voted for the ban-extension amendment earlier this year, of course, and the NRA says he “has voted consistently against gun owners.” So what’s the deal?

What’s really interesting to me are the very last two paragraphs:

The bill itself is not controversial, [some gun grabbers] said, because even gun owners favor its extension. Sixty-four percent of gun-owning households and half of the NRA members polled were in favor of extending the ban, according to a recent poll conducted by the Annenberg Election Survey.

But many of the weapons included in that poll, Uzis and AK-47s among them, have been illegal since 1981, [the NRA guy] said. [emphasis added]

Imagine that.

Total hours of actual news coverage I watched: 0.

Sources of info: Blogs and The Daily Show.

Did I miss anything? Some of Dennis Kucinich’s awkward gestures, though I did catch some on The Daily Show.

Mises reports on this victory in property rights:

Reversing more than two decades of land-use law, the Michigan Supreme Court late Friday overturned its own landmark 1981 Poletown decision and sharply restricted governments such as Detroit and Wayne County from seizing private land to give to other private users.

The unanimous decision is a decisive victory for property owners who object to the government seizing their land, only to give it to another private owner to build stadiums, theaters, factories, housing subdivisions and other economic development projects the government deems worthwhile.

Detroit and other municipalities have used the Poletown standard for years to justify land seizures as a way to revitalize.

In the decision, the court rejected Wayne County’s attempt to seize private land south of Metro Airport for its proposed Pinnacle Aeropark high-technology park. The Pinnacle project, announced in 1999, is geared to making Wayne County a hub of international high-tech development linked to the airport.

In an update to my post here, Barry updates us to the car bomb in Nashville. I’m with Barry: how exactly does one accidentally blow himself up? Or who kills themselves by blowing themselves up in an empty lot?

A blog has been set up to cover the Knox County election ballot. Cool idea.

Via South(of)KnoxBubba.

Add the ATF and portions of the EPA to the list:

A domestic centerpiece of the Bush/GOP agenda for a second Bush term is getting rid of the Internal Revenue Service, the DRUDGE REPORT has learned.

The Speaker of the House will push for replacing the nation’s current tax system with a national sales tax or a value added tax, Hill sources tell DRUDGE.

It is Drudge, so it’s probably made up since no penises are involved.

Jeff has the latest.

XRLQ nails one:

My favorite example is their inexiplicable support in the 1970s for the right of a group of Nazis and Klansman to yell “fire” in a crowded theater “we hate Jews” in an overwhelmingly Jewish neighborhood. It’s almost as if the ACLU apologists are so far out in left field that they actually expect conservatives to identify with the Klan or the Nazis, with whom they have nothing ideologically in common.

Bush took the time to slam Kerry for not getting heartland values (whatever those are), thusly:

“We stand for the Second Amendment, which gives every American the individual right to bear arms,” Bush told several thousand people who filled a rain-soaked baseball infield in this southeastern Ohio community. “I’ve got a record on that issue. It stands in stark contrast to my opponent.”

It also guarantees us the right to bear arms that look mean. And to bear a semiautomatic rifle that has an ability to accept a detachable magazine and has at least 2 of- (i) a folding or telescoping stock; (ii)a pistol grip that protrudes conspicuously beneath the action of the weapon; (iii)a bayonet mount; (iv) a flash suppressor or threaded barrel designed to accommodate a flash suppressor; and (v) a grenade launcher.

You have also stated support for renewal of the assault weapons ban on aesthetic features. That is in stark contrast to the words coming out of your mouth.

From the Columbia Basin Herald:

“The fact that he is a hunter and handles guns so well, I think, is also very, very helpful,” Rendell said as he accompanied Kerry on stops in three Pennsylvania counties that chose George Bush in 2000. “I’m cautiously optimistic. I think we should wind up winning by about 4 or 5 points.”

Handles guns well? You mean like this?

Kerry, while addressing the Bush administration’s terror policy, said:

Let there be no mistake, I will never hesitate to use force when it is required. Any attack will be met with a swift and certain response. I will never give any nation or international institution a veto over our national security . And I will build a stronger American military.

The Democrats can’t win on the issue of terror. Apparently, the only thing they’ve really decided is that they are not George Bush.

Roy Moore’s 10 commandments monument is touring the US. It is now in Tennessee. I guess as long as they don’t display it in, like, a court house or anything.

If you’re a blogger and you want a free anti-CANT device (AKA, scope level) just put a permanent link to mountsplus on your blog. I think those Mountsplus guys should look into buying some Blogads. Of course, I think SayUncle may need to start selling blogads.

Apparently, if I want you to be happy eating dirt, all I have to do is convince you that you would have had to eat shit before that. The Paper of Making Up The Record:

The White House projected on Friday that the budget deficit would reach $445 billion in this fiscal year.

That would make it by far the largest shortfall ever in the dollar amount, though it would be well below the record for a deficit as a percentage of the gross domestic product and well below the amount forecast six months ago.